Targeted Gold Nanocluster-Enhanced Radiotherapy of Prostate Cancer.
Dong LuoXinning WangSophia ZengGopalakrishnan RamamurthyClemens BurdaJames P BasilionPublished in: Small (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany) (2019)
For over a hundred years, X-rays have been a main component of the radiotherapeutic approaches to treat cancer. Yet, to date, no radiosensitizer has been developed to selectively target prostate cancer. Gold has excellent X-ray absorptivity and is used as a radiotherapy enhancing material. In this work, ultrasmall Au25 nanoclusters (NCs) are developed for selective prostate cancer targeting, radiotherapy enhancement, and rapid clearance from the body. Targeted-Au25 NCs are rapidly and selectively taken up by prostate cancer in vitro and in vivo and also have fast renal clearance. When combined with X-ray irradiation of the targeted cancer tissues, radiotherapy is significantly enhanced. The selective targeting and rapid clearance of the nanoclusters may allow reductions in radiation dose, decreasing exposure to healthy tissue and making them highly attractive for clinical translation.
Keyphrases
- prostate cancer
- radical prostatectomy
- cancer therapy
- early stage
- sensitive detection
- locally advanced
- radiation induced
- radiation therapy
- papillary thyroid
- gene expression
- drug delivery
- squamous cell carcinoma
- squamous cell
- rectal cancer
- lymph node metastasis
- magnetic resonance imaging
- fluorescent probe
- quantum dots
- energy transfer
- electron microscopy